Italian Mentality = NIL

So, today, all going well, with no problems.
4.30pm. dogs start barking as a car stops by the house entrance, no problem, or so I thought. Few minutes later tried to get some water from the taps and nothing!! Go out and look and the mains to the house had been turned off just above. Turned it back on again and a while later, this arrogant Italian woman from the house below arrives.
She may have a agriturismo, ( not the house below ), that I would never stay in, as have seen it, but she should least have the decency to ask if it is ok, instead of getting aggresive.

Let me see if I understand it, because it sounds amazing. She turned off your water mains (reason???) without telling or asking you and then she gets aggresive when you turn the water on? If that is the case, that woman has a MENTAL problem. It is not a problem regarding Italian, Chinese, or UK mentalities... To say the least, she has no manners...

Sorry Gala, should have explained a little better. The mains tap prior to our supply, serves her house below as well as us, so she just turned up and turned it off without asking.

Gosh! What a selfish idiot! And certainly no manners... Sorry, Geo. I do understand how upset you were. It is amazing that there are people like this in the world. And to top it all, she is in the "hospitality" industry... Don't worry, if she treats her clients like this, she will not survive very long. At least, did she tell you WHY she was turning off the mains?

Nutters are not restricted to Italians you know Geo, there are many in a variety Nations, British included (I can vouch for that).
Some are lovely, obliging, helpful, courteous and generous; unfortunately your neighbour doesn't seem to fit into any  of those catergories.
By the way what have you do to upset her??

I agree with Flip, people like that do not belong to any particular nationality. The problem is their personality and I do not think that you need to do anything to "upset" them. Their arrogance and stupidity have no limits.If she was experiencing any problems which required to turn off the water mains, she only had to tell Geo. After all, she drove her carup to his place  

Had not done anything to antagonise her Flip, but obviously, she thinks that she owns the whole area. Have talked to a few people who know her and apparently, that is her normal style.
It would be nice to just have a little courtesy. If she had asked, then it would be no problem. If I had been in the shower and the water just went off because of this unintelligent Italian idiot woman, then I would have been even more furious.

On a seperate thing, showing Italian intelligence. Golden oldie, goes into petrol station to fill his car. Drives off with diesel knozzle still in fuel tank, which snaps off from the pump. Friend tried to stop him, but he says no problem and just drives off with the nozzle somewhere in his fuel tank. Luckily his number was taken, so hopefully he will get to pay for a new filler nozzle.

Nutters everywhere Geotherm.  Italy!  UK!  Thailand!

The problem, as I understand it, is if they live next door!  

Pre-emptive strike next time Geo. Turn her supply off !!

I realise there are 'people like that' everywhere, but there do seem to be more in Italy!  Certainly in the south the mentality is - I want to do it so I will and there is no question of stopping beforehand and thinking of the consequences, or not being egotistical and selfish.  Cars 'parked' where they feel like it, and so on and so on.   My neighbour decided to (after a totally illegal 'restoration' of his home)  have a new water supply and my wall (my wall!) now has a large hole in it with his new meter - and not a word from him.   He just did it, because he needed to do it---- its very strange to a foreginer who would be petrified of doing such a thing, and is consequently told off by the locals for saying 'sorry' too much.... a word which does not exist in Sicilian....

As i'm sure modicasa will confirm "vendetta" "is a cold dish" and must never be served in the heat of the moment but in a cold calculated manner when the opportunity arises (vis a vis your unpleasant neighbour) i'm sure you'll have the opportunity to return her incivil actions in due course......i would certainly...it's the only language some people understand

Well let's balance a story of an inconsiderate individual ( Italian ) with a considerate individual ( Italian ). I was sitting outside the bar in the next village to ours, called Montappone, having a glass of wine with friends. We all left to go to a friends house for another drink. An hour and a half later I realised I didn't have my 'man-bag' with me. I knew straight away I had left it on the ground leaning against the table leg at the bar . I dashed back in a bit of a panic as it had everything in it - bank card, carta d'identità, tessera sanitaria, patente etc , just the thought of the hassle involved in replacing it all was too much. As soon as I went up to the bar the padrone gave a smile and said 'Your bag ?'. And there it was safely behind the bar, contents all present and correct. There had been about a dozen other people sitting there plus lots of people passing by, but it was not taken. As it happens the padrone said his wife had done the same thing a while ago and someone handed it in to the police station, and the police called him on her mobile phone to say they'd got it !

Good to hear that the story had a happy ending for you! It shows that there are nice people and terrible people everywhere and I still think that it has nothing to do with nationalities...

Great to hear good new stories robjw !! This is what I would expect in these small village communities.

Montappone has (or had !!) one of the VERY BEST fireworks displays that I can recall in the world ! I believe the new hotel (Palazzo Riccucci) is now up and running...........must call in sometime!

V

we have a local vipera and the only term  which she understands is denuncia. She is fond of doing this to the locals and is both feared and hated as a result but when the boot is on the other foot... doesn't your neighbour know that you can contract diseases if bacteria builds up in a switched off water pipe - especially when the weather is so warm, and if any of you were to fall ill........someone needs to just have a chat.

Perhaps that incident is more the exception than the rule.  We’ve had nothing but help & advice from the locals & neighbours 

Same case with us.   Everyone is lovely!

Vicino wrote:Great to hear good new stories robjw !! This is what I would expect in these small village communities.Montappone has (or had !!) one of the VERY BEST fireworks displays that I can recall in the world ! I believe the new hotel (Palazzo Riccucci) is now up and running...........must call in sometime!V

Some great hat factories there as well. Had dinner with a Albanian friend and was taken on a tour of the factory. Never wear hats, but he brings them as gifts.
Back to the original topic though. Local farmer who we have been friends with for a number of years, has now decided he wants his access rights across the front of the house, even though he says it is difficult for his tractors. Incident arose from another man he has been letting cut the grass, driving over a pile of stones we had delivered into the entrance. Wife just went down to say please be more carefull with your car. He grabbed her arm and threatened her with an iron bar he pulled out of his jeep.
Carabinieri called, but he drove away before they arrived and can you believe that this guy is apparently a officer in the Polizia Stradale .....
Ok, next day go to make the statement, but decide to let it go, only to discover the farmer has made a denuncia, saying we have denied him access. Commandate calls him to ask why he has been quite happy not to use the access for so long and he is being stupid, so we will see what happens next. He can have his 4 mtrs access, but he will have to approach from another direction, as he cannot turn in the entrance.

Obviously, Geo, you are in the wrong region... or neighbourhood. Sorry! Your neighbours sound like a bunch of nut cases... and it may be contagious! No wonder you were so upset, I had difficulties understanding what was going on. Now, I fully understand. It was not just the one incident, it is more serious than that. What can I say... I am terribly sorry to realize what you are going through. It is most unpleasant and upsetting.

My sympathies Geo.   

I suppose every Italian village/community has one bad apple.  Everyone where we live is wonderful ........ except for one!  Let's call him RT (which, by chance, happen to be his initials!).

When we bought Casa Ghiro 8 years ago there was a 'virtual' Strada Comunale which ran past our front door (virtual in the sense that it existed on a map but couldn't be identified on the ground).  Because we wanted to put a fence around the house (to keep out the local farmer's goats) we agreed with the commune that we would donate some of our land and re-route the 'virtual' Strada Comunale'.

All was well until RT got involved.  He insisted that, whereas the previous SC was invisible, the new SC had to be marked with wooden stakes and had to be formally shown on a map lodged with the commune.

Reluctantly the commune agreed and we're now €2500 poorer!

I think villages are the worst, they all seem to have vendetta's and denouciations against each other, they usually start with a money angle but then they continue!! sometimes passed on to the next generation. Don't get me started on the subject of relatives they are even worse!!

Denuncia, seems to be a favourite word in the Italian mentality, which I still think is a 3rd world country and I am not going to apologise for that comment.
Gala, the neighbours have been perfectly ok up to now and I have even helped this farmer when his milking shed collapsed in the heavy snow a few years ago, by disconnecting and saving the equipment in it, at no cost to him. Plus he then asked to do some work at his other farm on the milking equipment for the goats, again at no cost to him. Also he had a problem with a exhibition at the local Abbey and I had this desperate help call as the perspex slides would not fit into the holders that the Italian carpenter had supplied. Sorted, but obviously, but then Italians are the master race if you upset them later.
They are the most 2 faced people I have ever known and will never trust one again.

Sorry to hear that, Geo. It is quite awful! And what a disapointment for you after all your hard work. I do hope that we will not have to go through a similar experience...